BAKERSFIELD, Calif.(KBAK/KBFX) — Several residents used public comment at Tuesday night’s Bakersfield City Council meeting to condemn Ward 6 Councilmember Zack Bashirtash’s earlier remarks about homelessness, including his use of the phrase “homeless degenerates.” Bashirtash did apologize if he offended some people, but stood by what he said.

Last month, Bashirtash said he was upset the city prioritizes “homeless degenerates” over “the children in our community.”

RELATED: Local groups defend Bakersfield’s homeless efforts, stress need for resources and patience

During Tuesday’s meeting, speakers urged city leaders to hold themselves to a higher standard when discussing unhoused residents.

A speaker said the language used by elected officials can discourage people from coming forward.

Many speakers expressed disappointment in Bashirtash’s choice of words to describe unhoused people in Bakersfield. One commenter criticized Bashirtash for not participating in the point-in-time count, and several invited him to see the work community organizations are doing to help unhoused residents.

Bashirtash urged residents to look deeper into his comments in the past year’s city council meetings about his stance on homelessness. He said he spent six years working with homeless people with a non-profit.

“What bothers me is that we’ll continue to throw money at creating what we think is helpful, and it’s not.”

“While babies are being born behind grocery stores and discarded like trash,” he said. “Because we allow that person to be on the street, even though there is safe surrender and resources.”

Bashirtash continued, “When you are stuck in adrug-addicted cycle or struggling with mental health, you are not going to make a good decision for your life. That’s why we have a homeless population.”

Bashirtash defended what he had said a month ago and claimed that his statement had been taken out of context.

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Bashirtash apologized for offending people with what he said, but stated that he does not retract any of it.